The balloon ride itself unquestionably deserves five stars — it was a truly memorable experience. However, the same cannot be said for the travel agency that sold me this tour on TripAdvisor, "DrMo Tours Egypt," which unfortunately deserves zero stars.
Firstly, "DrMo Tours Egypt" failed to honor the start time clearly stated in my TripAdvisor/Viator booking confirmation. Prior to the tour, I was contacted via WhatsApp by "DrMo Tours Egypt" and pressured to pay for a so-called "sunrise upgrade". As I declined this fake upgrade, "DrMo Tours Egypt" unreasonably delayed my pickup time — from the original 5:30 a.m. (which would have allowed me to see the sunrise from the balloon ride) to 6:30 a.m. — clearly as a form of retaliation.
To make matters worse, Viator/TripAdvisor Customer Care offered no support whatsoever in addressing this breach of contract.
Furthermore, "DrMo Tours Egypt" merely acted as an intermediary, outsourcing the balloon ride to a separate operator: "Luxor Hot Air Balloon" (@luxorhotairballoon | +20 10 00717478 |
[email protected]).
So my recommendation to all travelers: cut the middle man. Do not book this tour through "DrMo Tours Egypt" on TripAdvisor. Instead, contact Luxor Hot Air Balloon directly to ensure a smoother and more transparent experience.